Strategic marketing plan ( Lotteria )

Established in 1919, A&W first offered its signature root beer float before entering the fast food market. The company grew rapidly and expanded overseas, establishing its presence as Singapore’s first fast food restaurant in 1966. However, the growth of other competitors caused A&W to pull out from the Singapore market in 2003. There has since been demand and requests from Singaporeans for A&W to return.

A&W will be making a comeback into Singapore’s fast food scene with a different approach this time round. There is a current trend for healthier eating, despite a steady consumption of fast food. A&W will thus jump on the bandwagon and introduce its existing signature teen burger as well as other healthier options, making it the healthier choice for fast food as compared to the other key players in the market who are deemed as unhealthy.

Thorough research and analyses has been conducted to help identify factors that will contribute to the development of effective marketing strategies. One such factor that is identified is the increase in usage of smart devices and food delivery services, which shows the importance of establishing a strong digital presence to maximise outreach. This is in addition to other promotional efforts, such as television ads.

This report will cover such findings and actions to be taken by A&W when reentering the Singapore market. These will help the company grow and capture 10% of the market share within the first two years, 5 CBD outlets and 8 heartland outlets within the first year.

A full financial forecast is also provided to show costs that will be incurred and the point of breakeven. An implementation timeline is also included to show the full breakdown of the plan.

The report will end with a contingency plan, which will be used as an alternative in the worst-case scenario where the business venture fails. This will help to minimise any possible losses that will be incurred in the case of failure.

A&W was first established in June 1919, focusing on the sales of their now famous root beer float, in California. The famous brand name “A&W” only came about 3 years later, with the alphabets representing the names of the founders, Allen and Wright. The business continued seeing growth and expanded during 1922 to 1933 into other locations with a wider product portfolio (A&W 2015).

A&W penetrated the Singapore market in 1966 as part of its expansion and became the first fast food restaurant in the country. The company was also the pioneer of drive-thru restaurants in Singapore, with the first drive-thru established in 1970, nine years before the local establishment of another competitor - McDonald’s.

Unfortunately, A&W saw a decline in business over the years with the increase in competition, resulting in the full closure of A&W’s Singapore outlets in 2003. (Koh 2017). A&W’s absence has since created demand and brought about requests from Singaporeans through different channels such as social media (Channel News Asia 2017).

In 2011, A&W Restaurants was acquired by A Great American Brand LLC from YUM! Brands Inc. This acquisition has helped A&W to grow in their market share across multiple countries over the years (QSR Magazine 2011).

· To achieve 8 heartlands and 5 CBD outlets within a year

· To achieve a market share of 10% within 2 years

· To begin research and development on new food management and delivery system within 6 months of operation

· To implement new system and increase productivity by 20% within 3 years